


Ride or Die

by nanaa127



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Sickfic, brotherhood era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-11
Updated: 2020-06-11
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:00:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24654229
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nanaa127/pseuds/nanaa127
Summary: Gladio just wants to give Ignis a ride home and help him take a load off. Ignis doesn't have time for that, thanks.
Relationships: Gladiolus Amicitia/Ignis Scientia
Comments: 21
Kudos: 83





	Ride or Die

"Those had better not be keys in your hand," Gladio said, his mouth inches away from Ignis' ear. His mild amusement at catching the young chamberlain off guard lasted about half a microsecond before he was nearly brained by an unintentional headbutt as Ignis jerked upright from where he'd been slumped against his ugly ass Crown-issued car.

"Gladiolus," Ignis greeted stiffly as he whirled around, pretending like he hadn't had the crap scared out of him. "A little warning next time, please."

Gladio waited for a bitchy follow-up quip that never came, and no wonder - the advisor looked like shit. Sophisticated, professional, gorgeous shit, but shit nonetheless. Bruised, bloodshot eyes, wan face - even his weirdly perky new hairstyle seemed to be drooping. "I gave you plenty of warning," the Shield snorted. "You just didn't hear it." Because Gladio was a lot of awesome things, but a silent ninja he was not. 

Ignis gave him a little disbelieving sniff and then froze. "Iggy?" Gladio asked warily.

"I'm fine," the advisor croaked. Which was such a lie, because Gladio could practically hear the snot rattling around each time Ignis breathed. Gladio watched in mildly disgusted fascination as his friend swallowed hard and visibly struggled to suppress the coughs that the Shield just knew were threatening to burst out.

"Yeah, uh huh. Keep telling yourself that." He held out his hand. "Keys. Give 'em here."

Ignis looked confused, which was worrisome because Iggy didn't _do_ confused. "Why?"

Gladio frowned at him and wriggled his fingers impatiently. "'Cause I don't want tomorrow's headlines to be about how the prince's advisor wrapped his car around a fucking lamp post. Hand 'em over, Iggy."

"Don't be ridiculous. I'm perfectly capable of driving."

"Driving yourself into the ground, sure. You're 'perfectly capable' of doing that." Gladio gave Ignis an unimpressed look and in one lightening quick movement, snatched the keys in question out of Ignis' loose grip. _Okay, now I_ know _he's not right_. Gladio was fast, but he knew from several ego-busting sparring sessions that the advisor was faster. No way a healthy Iggy was gonna just stand there and let Gladio show him up. 

The chamberlain's eyes narrowed dangerously but he made no move to grab the keys back. Instead, he nonchalantly propped himself against his car, and Gladio could almost buy that Iggy was doing it because he wanted to and not because he might have fallen flat on his face if he hadn't. "If you're quite done with these childish games, I have things to do," Ignis said tiredly. "Unless you plan on chauffeuring me around Insomnia, I demand that you return my keys."

"Oh, you _demand_ , do you?" 

"Gladio, please."

And damn if Ignis didn't know exactly how to make the Shield feel guilty as hell. Which was ridiculous, because he had nothing to feel guilty about - Gladio was trying to be a good friend and _help_ Ignis. Although apparently, he was failing pretty hard at it, if the exhausted frustration in Ignis' voice was any indication. 

"Sorry, Iggy," Gladio apologized quickly. "Anyway, you're in luck 'cause that's pretty much my plan."

A perfect eyebrow peeked over the rim of Ignis' spectacles. "Surely you have better things to do."

"Nope. I got nothing." Actually, he had a stack of field reports he needed to review and deliver to Cor by the end of the day, but whatever. Wouldn't be the first time the Marshal chewed his ass out for late paperwork, and it probably wouldn't be the last. Besides, Ignis asked if he had anything _better_ to do.

"I find that hard to believe," Ignis protested. "You shouldn't waste your evening driving me around the city."

Gladio gently took hold of Ignis' elbow and led the docile advisor over to the passenger side of the car and helped him inside. Or at least, that was how it went in his head. In reality, Ignis gave a pissy little huff and dug his heels in as he tried to resist Gladio's guidance, which just fucking figured. Gladio loved Iggy, he really did, but the man was a fucking pain in the ass. Especially when he was sick and didn't want to admit it. 

"Give it a rest, Iggy," Gladio growled, and shit - he really hoped he wasn't gonna have to actually pick up the chamberlain and _throw_ him into the car. That wouldn't end well for anyone. "We're not gonna be wasting anyone's time 'cause I'm taking you straight home."

"No."

"No?" Gladio opened the car door and gestured towards it. "Get in."

"I'm afraid that's not an option. I still need to buy groceries for Noct and pick him up when his shift is done. I expect he'll be wanting dinner - "

"Iggy, get in the car."

"- and he has a history paper due tomorrow that needs final reviewing. I also need to pick up Noct's dry cleaning. I've already put it off far too long as it is - 

"Six, Iggy, will you get in the fucking car already!"

The advisor held up his finger. "- and I need to stop by the university library to pick up some books for my own research paper. So as you can see, my day is hardly done."

The young chamberlain seemed to sag further and further with each task he listed until his spine was practically bent in half from the weight of his duties. The Shield had no doubt that when Ignis actually made it home after doing all that shit, there would be more work waiting for him there. At this rate, he was gonna have to stage a fucking intervention or something if he wanted Iggy survive until his next birthday. No wonder the poor guy looked so wiped.

"Yeah, you're not doing any of that. All you're gonna do is go straight to bed and get some damn sleep. Now _please_ , Iggy, get in."

"He finally remembers his manners," Ignis muttered, sniffling again. The chamberlain winced at the wet sound his own sinuses made. "Gladio, I won't leave my work unfinished."

Gladio crossed his arms and glared. It was a sight that would have intimidated about ninety-nine percent of the Crown City, but of course Ignis fell into the one percent that was totally unimpressed by it. Still, it made Gladio feel better to stand there and glower. "I'll finish it for you."

"I couldn't possibly - "

"Iggy. Shut. Up." And damn it, now he really was like _this close_ to tossing Iggy into the vehicle, the stubborn bastard. The Shield gave his friend a suggestive little shove and Ignis finally relented, reluctantly climbing into the front seat. 

With Ignis situated, Gladio ran around to the other side and slid himself behind the wheel. He glanced at the advisor as he turned the engine over. "You doing okay?"

"Aside from being kidnapped? Quite." 

"Oh, come on. At least I let you ride up front, instead of tying you up and and shoving your ass in the trunk." 

"My ass is grateful for your benevolence," Ignis said dryly.

"Yeah? Well if your ass really wants to thank me for it, I got some suggestions." Gladio mentally slapped himself even as the words left his mouth. _He's sick, you inconsiderate dumbass. Keep a goddamn lid on it_. "Uh. Sorry about that."

"No worries," Ignis murmured softly. "I shall keep that in mind." Gladio risked taking his eyes off the road - never a good idea, even when it was past rush hour - and peeked at the chamberlain. Ignis was slumped against the window, head resting against the cool glass, perfect posture nowhere in sight. He was flushed pink, adding a pale wash of color to his ashen face, and the corners of his lips were curled up with amusement. He met Gladio's eyes and the Shield felt warmth rising in his own cheeks. 

A little birdie had sauntered into the showers after a sparring session earlier in the day and had casually mentioned that Ignis was a bit off. "We had to stop training early," Nyx had informed him. "He was hacking everywhere and I sure as hell didn't want to catch whatever plague he's got. Someone needs to tell that boy to go home." 

It had caught Gladio off guard, which pissed him off. "Well, why didn't you?" 

"I did. But you know Scientia - he ain't gonna listen to anyone but himself. Stubborn as shit, that kid."

 _As if I didn't know that already._ "So what are you telling me for?" 

The glaive had leaned against the tiled shower wall and smirked at him, totally unconcerned that he was standing there butt naked. Gladio wasn't exactly shy about his own body, but when he was in public he usually preferred to have conversations when his dick wasn't hanging out. "Well. I bet he'll listen to his friends, too. And you're his _friend_ , right?" The glaive then had the goddamn balls to _wink_ at him.

Gladio scowled. "Fuck off, Ulric." Seriously, what was this, a high school cafeteria? No wonder Iris adored Nyx - neither of them could help sticking their noses into his goddamn business.

Nyx had shrugged. "Just saying."

"Go say it somewhere else." 

Ulric had given him a shit-eating grin before wandering away, and Gladio had to remind himself that Nyx was a respected member of the king's own guard, and that attempting to rearrange his face would be unprofessional. Probably. Besides, it wasn't Ulric he was mad at.

Gladio had stuck his head under the hot water spray, scrubbing roughly at his hair as worry had eaten away at him. He hadn't seen the chamberlain much that week, but he'd run into Iggy earlier that day - not for long, just a 'hey, what's up' as they'd passed each other in the hallway. The advisor had been rushing to some meeting or another - gods, when was he _not_ \- and Gladio hadn't gotten a good look at him, but... He'd seemed fine? His arms had been stuffed with a stack of papers, with a briefcase dangling from one hand and his permanent Ebony can attachment glued to the other. He'd given Gladio a small nod of acknowledgement, while the Shield had offered up a little wave. Ignis had been upright, conscious, mobile...should Gladio have known something was off? It could be so fucking hard to tell with Noct's chamberlain, but he couldn't help feeling like he should have known. This was _Iggy_ , after all. 

And obviously Ulric had been right, the smug asshole, because Ignis was now dozing in the passenger seat of his own car, barely paying attention to where Gladio was going. It wasn't until they pulled up in front of Ignis' building that the advisor roused, blinking sleepily. Gladio was certain that he would have found it fucking adorable if he wasn't also just a little bit concerned that the lack of awareness meant that Iggy's brains were roasting in his skull. The Shield parked the car and then reached over to press the back of his hand against Ignis' forehead, frowning at the heat he found there.

Ignis pushed his hand away. "Please don't," the advisor said blearily. "It's quite unnecessary."

Gladio frowned. "I think you have a fever. You're pretty warm."

Ignis made a skeptical noise as he straightened in his seat and adjusted his glasses, which had been knocked crooked by his impromptu nap. "That's a very inaccurate way of measuring temperature."

"...but you don't deny you might have a fever."

"I don't - " Ignis paused to gingerly clear his throat, and Gladio thought that he was maybe a little nervous about the the mucus bomb that would inevitably explode when Iggy's snot finally decided it was done being restrained and made a break for it. That shit was gonna be _messy_. "I don't deny that this certainly isn't the grocery store. Or the dry cleaners. Or the library."

"Okay, now I know your head is fucking fried," Gladio muttered as he got out of the car. He opened the passenger door for the advisor. "We literally just talked about this like, fifteen minutes ago."

Ignis stared up at him, clutching his briefcase to his chest. His seatbelt was still strapped in place. "Hmm. Yes, I do seem to remember a conversation about a kidnapping. Mine, more specifically."

The Shield rolled his eyes heavenward - or the concrete ceiling of the parking garage, whatever - and begged all the Astrals for patience. Hopefully they could hear his pleas over the sound of Iggy's snot-riddled ridiculousness. "I told you I'd take care of all that. And I'll pick up Noct and even feed the brat, since I'm feeling generous. Now get out of the car, Iggy."

Instead of being reassured, an appalled expression crossed the advisor's weary face. "No. Absolutely not. You'll buy Noctis something horribly greasy for dinner, and then I will have to explain to His Majesty why his son has developed heart disease at the tender age of seventeen. Thank you but no."

 _Damn._ Well, there went his plans for nicking a slice or three of garula sausage pizza as a nice little snack. "Fine, then I'll get him something green and healthy. Happy? Come on, let's go."

"No, that won't do either," Ignis said, looking genuinely distressed. "If you set something that looks _too_ wholesome in front of Noct, he'll never eat it. These matters require a certain level of cunning."

Gladio knew that Ignis often bent over backwards for Noct in the name of love and duty, but holy fucking Six - the amount of brainpower the chamberlain apparently devoted to something as simple as shoveling food down the princess' throat was a little unreal. Just like the amount of effort Gladio was spending to first get Iggy into and now back out the car was a little fucking unreal. "Okay look, then why don't you tell me what to buy for him, huh? Does that work?"

Ignis considered the offer, eyelids dropping to half-mast. He looked like he was about to fall alseep again. "I suppose that will do," Ignis relented at last. "But you must agree to stick to the menu I set. Noctis tends to gorge himself on junk food at school, so please don't let him wheedle you into other options."

"Please, when was the last time Noct 'wheedled' me into anything?" Gladio asked with a snort. "I got it covered, Iggy, I _promise_. Now for the love of all the fucking Astrals, _will you get out of the car?_ "

The advisor finally obeyed, and he must have been way more tired than he was letting on, because when the Shield lightly rested his hand against Iggy's lower back in a show of support, there were no loud objections or complaints. They moved along at about half-speed, and by the time they made it to the elevators, Ignis was practically draped over Gladio's shoulder. And yeah, Iggy was definitely running a fever, alright - for someone that normally ran cold, he was radiating a ton of heat.

The snot explosion that Gladio had feared caught up with them on the elevator, and the Shield had been right to be afraid - it was fucking spectacular, and not in a good way. If they hadn't been the only two people riding in it, Gladio was pretty sure Ignis would have cleared out the elevator car in two seconds flat. What started as a small scraping noise snowballed into something that sounded like a full-on death rattle. The chamberlain miserably hunched into himself as he wheezed through a run of coughs, and then bent double as they kept going and going and _going_. Gladio rubbed his hand up and down Ignis' back, smoothing over the knobs of his spine as the advisor shook uncontrollably from the force of his hacking.

"Shh, you're alright," Gladio murmured. "Breathe, Iggy. You'll be okay." He winced at the deep, wet barks - they sounded fucking _painful_ \- and wished that he had a hankie or tissue or whatever to offer his friend. Not surprisingly, when Iggy's lungs finally decided to stop torturing him, the advisor reached into his pocket and pulled out a clean white handkerchief. Although it sure as hell didn't stay clean for long, if the spitting and gagging was any indication.

"Shit, Igs. How the hell did you keep that in for so long? Ulric wasn't kidding when he said you had the plague." Gladio guided Ignis off the elevator and down the corridor to his flat.

"So that's who tattled on me," Ignis murmured roughly. He sounded like he had a five-pack-a-day habit. "Practice, Gladio. The Councilors consider it rude when they are, ah - " Ignis paused to take a deep controlled breath "- interrupted by incessant coughing."

The Shield frowned. "Well, they're a bunch of touchy assholes." He held up Ignis' crowded keyring so the rightful owner could see it. "Which one?"

"Allow me." Ignis took the keys from Gladio and unlocked his front door. "It's an understandable reaction. I'm also annoyed by the noise, and I'm the one doing the coughing."

Ignis' flat wasn't very fancy, but there were unmistakeable signs of the chamberlain all over the place, from the stuffed bookshelves to the personal mementos - mostly crappy craft stuff that Noct had made in school and a bunch of photos - that were proudly displayed on the shelf across from the door. Ignis slid his shoes off and Gladio did the same, following chamberlain into his home.

"Well," Ignis said, carefully setting his briefcase down on his kitchen table. "You have successfully coerced me into coming home. I am depending on you to follow through on your promise, Gladiolus." 

"And I will. Once I know you're actually resting instead of working." Seriously, did Iggy think that he was some kind of idiot? 

Ignis' pale face flushed again. _Gotcha, you sneaky bastard._ "I don't recall asking for a babysitter."

"You didn't. Now get your ass into bed. I'll make you some tea."

Now that he was home, all the fight seemed to have slithered out of Ignis because he actually did as he was told the first time. Not quietly, of course - Astrals fucking forbid that Iggy actually take a load off without bitching and moaning about work - but Gladio was still willing to chalk it up as a victory. He rummaged around Ignis' cupboards, which were predictably crammed with unopened cases of Ebony but no tea. The fridge was similarly bare, reinforcing Gladio's suspicions that Ignis survived on nothing but coffee and willpower. There were, however, a couple of sad lemons rolling around the fruit drawer, and that was something the Shield could definitely work with. 

A few minutes later, Gladio headed towards Ignis' bedroom with a steaming mug of hot lemon water sweetened with a large dollop of honey. He could admit that he'd often thought about this - bringing a mug of tea or coffee to Ignis while the other man lounged in bed. Obviously, in his fantasies Iggy was lazing about after a round or three of mindblowing sex rather than a round of the flu from hell, but yeah, this wasn't the time to be thinking about that.

Ignis was nowhere in sight, but the sound of the running shower clued Gladio in as to where the chamberlain had disappeared. The Shield sat on the edge of the unmade bed and grimaced when he heard the thick, rattling sound of Ignis' coughs. As bad as Iggy sounded now, Gladio would have to make sure that it didn't get any worse overnight. He made a mental note to pick up extra medication, along with some simple groceries to make sure Ignis didn't starve to death.

The door to the ensuite opened and Ignis stumbled out, hair wet and clad in a pair of faded flannel pants and a worn grey t-shirt. Gladio swallowed hard - he'd half-wanted Ignis to come out wearing nothing more than a bath towel, but thank the gods he hadn't. As it was, Ignis looked touchably soft in his pajamas, and this really, _really_ wasn't the time to be thinking about that.

"Gladio." Ignis looked surprised to see him. "You're still here."

"Yeah," Gladio replied, feeling weirdly flustered and a bit guilty. He stood and thrust the warm drink towards Ignis. "I, um, made you some...water."

Ignis accepted the mug and stared down at it. He'd left his spectacles off after showering so Gladio had a clear view of the faint bemusement coloring his face. "Oh. You shouldn't have."

Gladio laughed self-consciously. _Nice, Amicitia. That was real fucking smooth_. "It's got lemon. And honey. I make it for Iris when she's feeling crappy. She says it makes her feel better."

The chamberlain's expression softened into something so kind that it made Gladio's heart thump painfully in his chest. Ignis took a sip and gave him a small smile. "That's lovely, Gladio. Thank you."

"Uh, sure. No problem. So anyway," Gladio said, suddenly at a loss for what to do. If this was his baby sister, he would have wrapped her up in her favorite blanket, handed her a stuffed moogle and watched rom-coms with her until she fell asleep. He doubted that Ignis would appreciate that - he didn't seem like a rom-com kind of guy. The Shield wondered what kind of movies Ignis did like. Or if he liked movies at all. Gladio kinda wanted to find out, one day. "Once you're set, I'll get out of your hair."

Ignis made for his bed and after setting the mug on his nightstand, slumped down onto the mattress with a quiet, relieved sigh. Gladio pulled the duvet up over his curled form. "You need anything?" he asked.

The advisor peeked at him with one fever-bright eye. "Dry cleaning. Groceries for Noct. His shift ends at eight. Spiced chickatrice noodle bowl from Ovid Café for his dinner, substitute the carrots with aubergines. He has an assignment due."

Gladio rolled his eyes but made note of the meal choice. "Yeah, I got it. I meant for you, Iggy." 

Ignis shook his head and buried his face into his pillow. With all his tailored old-man clothes and professional armor stripped away, he looked more like the teenager he still was. He looked so damn _young_. "Need to go to the library."

"You can do that later. Or I can do it for you, if you tell me what you need. Honestly, Igs, how'd you think you were gonna get all that shit done when you're so beat, huh?"

"Could have," Ignis mumbled. His breathing hitched then settled. "If required."

The Shield didn't doubt it. Ignis definitely would have powered through it because he could be a goddamn unstoppable machine when he had to be. Gladio shook his head. "Yeah, I'll bet. Glad you're letting me help, though."

"Sorry to be so much trouble."

"Hey. It's no trouble at all," Gladio said softly. On impulse, he reached out and stroked the damp strands of Iggy's hair. "I got you."

"Indeed." Ignis' body was lax as he surrendered to the exhaustion that had probably been dogging him all day. He reached up and loosely wrapped his long fingers around the hand petting his head and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Thank you."

Gladio squeezed back, and wondered if something important was happening here. They'd been flirting for a while - the Shield had no idea when or how it had started, but here they were - and not only was it fucking awesome for Gladio's ego because Iggy was smokin' hot, but it was also _fun_. Turned out that Ignis could be the worst goddamn tease, and it was a way bigger turn-on than Gladio had ever expected. But being allowed to see Ignis like this, and getting the chance to help him out with something, even it if was just wrangling Noct, it felt...right. Good. Very good. Like, Gladio wanted to do this every single day.

"Hey, I'm gonna take your key and ask Prompto to stop by with some stuff. That okay with you?"

"Mmm." 

"I'm gonna take that as a yes." Gladio decided to warn Blondie against startling Iggy when he came in, just in case. No reason for the kid get skewered because Ignis didn't remember this conversation. He gave the chamberlain's hand one more affectionate squeeze. "Alright, I'm out. Rest up, Iggy."

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Until next time. :)


End file.
